Huione has erupted in a bank run! The BCH group has had 14.4 billion BTC seized by the US, and the Cambodian Money Laundering empire has collapsed.

Multiple branches of the Huione Group in Cambodia are currently experiencing large-scale queues for withdrawals, suspected to be a bank run. The number of people queuing to withdraw from several Huione branches in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville ranges from dozens to hundreds, with lines extending outside the outlets. This bank run originates from the U.S. sanctions against the chairman of the BCH Group, Chen Zhi.

Bank run erupts in Sihanoukville, with hundreds queuing outside the door

(Source: X)

On October 17, several branches of the Huione Group in Cambodia exhibited unusual scenes. Outside multiple Huione branches in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville, the number of people queuing to withdraw cash ranged from dozens to hundreds, with lines extending outside the establishments. Photos from the scene showed many users appearing anxious, with some waiting for hours under the scorching sun without being able to complete their withdrawals. Such scenes typically signify the outbreak of a trust crisis in financial history; a bank run occurs when users collectively believe that a financial institution may be bankrupt or that funds are frozen.

Huione Group has an extensive branch network in Cambodia, covering major cities and economic zones such as Phnom Penh, Sihanoukville, and Poipet. These branches not only serve local Cambodians but also act as a fund transfer station for a large number of Chinese nationals and internet scam practitioners. Money laundering activities in Cambodia have long relied on Huione's payment network, and the group's Huione Pay was once one of the largest third-party payment platforms in Cambodia.

The scale of this bank run indicates the seriousness of the situation. The normal operation of financial institutions relies on a reserve banking system, where only a portion of deposits is kept as reserves, while the rest is used for loans or investments. When a large number of users withdraw funds simultaneously, the reserves can be quickly depleted, leading to payment difficulties or even bankruptcy. The long queue of hundreds of people outside the Huione branch shows that user confidence in the group has been severely shaken.

Market rumors suggest that this sanction will affect Huione's assets, including freezing bank accounts, seizing crypto assets, and cutting off cross-border payment channels. For users relying on Huione for fund transfers, this means that funds may be stuck within the system and cannot be withdrawn. Panic is spreading quickly on social media, prompting more users to rush to branches for withdrawals, creating a typical bank run spiral.

The Huione Group has not yet issued an official statement regarding the bank run incident, and this silence has further exacerbated market panic. In a financial crisis, timely and transparent communication is key to stabilizing confidence, and Huione's silence may be interpreted as an inability to respond or that the situation is more serious than expected.

Chen Zhi and BCH Group Fully Sanctioned on 146 Targets

The recent bank run at Huione originated from the U.S. sanctions on Chen Zhi, the chairman of the Prince Group. The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has imposed comprehensive sanctions on 146 targets within the Prince Group transnational criminal organization (Prince Group TCO), which is headquartered in Cambodia and led by Chen Zhi, operating a transnational criminal empire through online investment fraud targeting the U.S. and other regions around the world.

The scale of 146 targets is extremely rare in the history of OFAC sanctions, indicating that the BCH group’s criminal network is vast and complex. These targets may include individuals, corporate entities, bank accounts, cryptocurrency wallet addresses, and more. Comprehensive sanctions mean that any U.S. individual or entity is prohibited from trading with these targets, and violators will face criminal prosecution. More importantly, international financial institutions often proactively cut ties with sanctioned targets to avoid the risk of secondary sanctions.

The Prince Group operates a money laundering empire in Cambodia through “pig slaughtering” scams. “Pig slaughtering” is a meticulously designed investment scam where scammers establish emotional connections with victims through social platforms, gradually luring them to invest in fake cryptocurrency or forex platforms, ultimately disappearing with the funds. This type of scam has caused hundreds of billions of dollars in losses worldwide from 2020 to 2025, with victims across the United States, Europe, Asia, and beyond.

Chen Zhi, as the chairman of the BCH Group, has been accused of leading this multinational criminal network. Investigations by U.S. law enforcement agencies show that the BCH Group not only operates fraud platforms but also establishes a complete money laundering chain. The funds obtained from fraud are converted into cryptocurrencies through payment platforms such as Huione Pay, and then the sources of funds are obscured through complex on-chain transactions, ultimately being exchanged for fiat currency or invested in physical industries such as real estate and casinos in Cambodia. The integrity and scale of this industrial chain make the BCH Group one of the largest money laundering organizations in Cambodia.

Huione Group plays a key role in this network. As Cambodia's largest third-party payment platform, Huione Pay handles a large volume of cross-border fund flows, a significant portion of which comes from fraudulent activities. In March 2025, Huione Pay's banking license was revoked by the National Bank of Cambodia, with the official reason being violations of anti-money laundering regulations and failure to implement proper KYC (Know Your Customer) procedures. This license revocation had previously triggered a small-scale bank run, but it was not on the scale of this one.

$12 billion BTC seized and $2.4 billion transferred again

On October 14, the U.S. Department of Justice sought to seize 127,271 Bitcoins, valued at approximately $12 billion, which are related to a multinational “pig butchering” scam operated by Chen Zhi. This is one of the largest single cryptocurrency seizures in U.S. history, second only to the Silk Road and Bitfinex hacking cases. The 127,271 BTC accounts for about 0.6% of the total Bitcoin supply, and its market impact cannot be underestimated.

Even more shocking is the subsequent development. On October 16, Bitcoin worth $2.4 billion was transferred again from Chen Zhi's associated wallet, following the earlier disclosure of seized Bitcoin, suggesting that the U.S. government may have seized an additional $2.4 billion worth of Bitcoin from Chen Zhi. The total of the two seizures amounts to approximately $14.4 billion, making the Chen Zhi case the largest law enforcement action in cryptocurrency history.

How are these BTC tracked and seized? U.S. law enforcement agencies use blockchain analysis tools like Chainalysis and Elliptic to trace the complete path of fraudulent funds from the victims' wallets to mixers, exchanges, and final destinations. While Bitcoin transactions are anonymous, the transparency of the blockchain allows for the tracking of fund flows. Once the wallet address controlled by Chen Zhi is identified, law enforcement can obtain asset control through international cooperation or technical means (such as seizing private keys).

The $2.4 billion secondary transfer has sparked various speculations. It could be that the U.S. government is transferring the seized BTC to a more secure cold wallet, or it may be that law enforcement has discovered previously undisclosed wallets controlled by Chen Zhi. In either case, this indicates that the investigation is still deepening, and the scale of Chen Zhi's crypto assets may far exceed initial estimates.

The impact on Huione is catastrophic. If Chen Zhi's assets, as the actual controller, are seized on a large scale, the solvency of the Huione Group will be seriously questioned. Users are worried that their funds in Huione may be frozen or unable to be withdrawn, and this panic directly triggered the bank run on October 17.

Huione Money Laundering History and International Regulatory Crackdown

The Huione Group (Huiwang Group) has faced significant international regulatory pressure in recent years due to allegations of money laundering in Cambodia, online fraud (such as “pig butchering”), and illegal trading. In March 2025, the bank license of its payment platform Huione Pay was revoked by the National Bank of Cambodia, leading to difficulties for users in withdrawing funds and triggering a large-scale bank run. This license revocation is an action taken by the Cambodian government under international pressure, demonstrating that Huione's illegal activities can no longer be tolerated even within Cambodia.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury proposed banning Huione Group from accessing the U.S. financial system in the first half of this year. If this proposal is formally implemented, it will sever all ties between Huione and the U.S. dollar clearing system, including SWIFT transfers, correspondent banking services, and U.S. dollar-denominated cryptocurrency transactions. For Huione, which relies on cross-border capital transfers, this is equivalent to a financial death penalty.

The money laundering problem in Cambodia has a long history. The country's loose regulatory environment, developed underground gambling industry, and close economic ties with China make it an ideal location for transnational money laundering. The Huione Group has utilized this environment to establish a vast money laundering network, serving clients including fraud groups, underground money houses, and even corrupt officials. The 146 targets sanctioned by the United States are essentially an attempt to dismantle the entire money laundering ecosystem in Cambodia.

The chain reaction of OFAC sanctions is becoming apparent. International banks are cutting ties with Huione, cryptocurrency exchanges are beginning to freeze accounts associated with the BCH group, and local partner companies in Cambodia are also distancing themselves. This comprehensive encirclement has paralyzed Huione's business operations, and a bank run has become an inevitable result. For users who have funds stored in Huione, the optimal strategy at present is to withdraw funds as quickly as possible. This collective individual rational choice is accelerating Huione's collapse.